Wallwarts in the toilet`

ronsimpson · May 9, 2018

gary350 said:
WHY so many different names for the same thing?

Also called power supplies.
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English is a strange language that is made up of several languages. Most all words have multiple meanings. Most all items have multiple words.
Sheep, lamb, mutton, hogget, Ovis aries, live stock, (there are 200 major breeds of sheep each with a different name)
When the sheep get out and run down the road they have words that we can't use here.

crutschow · May 9, 2018

gary350 said:
WHY so many different names for the same thing? Most people call them adaptors or converters.

Because Wall Wart is more descriptive of an adapter that directly plugs into the wall socket.
Not all adaptors or converters plug directly into the socket. They can have a cord with a plug.

dknguyen · May 9, 2018

crutschow said:
Because Wall Wart is more descriptive of an adapter that directly plugs into the wall socket.
Not all adaptors or converters plug directly into the socket. They can have a cord with a plug.

I call it a wall wart because it's fun to say (rolls of the tongue more easily too). But I'll steal your reason instead because it makes more sense.

Ever notice that if you type "wall wart" into the Digikey search, AC-DC power supplies comes up confidently displays exactly the products you're looking for even though the word "wart" appears nowhere in the official literature or datasheets of any of the products?

And it's not just basing the search results based on the word "wall" in the search phrase either because if you type in only "wall", Digikey is a lot more uncertain about what you're looking for. The same thing happens if you just only enter "wart".

schmitt trigger · May 9, 2018

gary350 said:
WHAT is a Wall Wart?

They are actually a disease like cancer.
At first you may have a single one at your whole house. One could ignore it..
But nowadays, with the proliferation of wireless devices and rechargeable tools, which require periodic re-charging batteries, these things metastasize all over a home.

crutschow · May 9, 2018

schmitt trigger said:
these things metastasize all over a home.

And you start having to add outlet socket extenders to accommodate them all.
And you need extenders with sufficient room between sockets to put two wall-warts side-by-side.

ronsimpson · May 9, 2018

schmitt trigger said:
They are actually a disease like cancer.

Cure:

dknguyen · May 9, 2018

ronsimpson said:
Cure:

All my wall warts are not for smartphones.

ronsimpson · May 9, 2018

dknguyen said:
All my wall warts are not for smartphones.

Many new products now use "USB" 5.0V as a power source. I really like this new standard.

Wall power supplies come in AC or DC.
Any voltage from 3 to 48.
Power 1 through 43 watt
Almost any connector, round, square, long, short, 2.35mm, 3.5mm, 3.8mm, 4.0, 4.75, 5.0, 5.5, screw terminal, wires,
Polarity (+) or (-)

Who would have thought that you can get a USB tooth brush. I just got two USB flashlights.

BobW · May 9, 2018

Any electrical outlet in a washroom is required by code to be a GFI type outlet. So there needn't be any concern about wall wart leakage current.

ChrisP58 · May 9, 2018

BobW said:
Any electrical outlet in a washroom is required by code to be a GFI type outlet. So there needn't be any concern about wall wart leakage current.

Yes.... and no.

A GFCI won't reduce the amount of leakage current from something plugged into it, it will just trip if the leakage current exceeds it's trip point.

So, if you want to reduce the probability of nuisance tripping of the GFCI, choose a power supply with a low leakage current.

Nigel Goodwin · May 10, 2018

BobW said:
Any electrical outlet in a washroom is required by code to be a GFI type outlet. So there needn't be any concern about wall wart leakage current.

That's solely country specific, which is a problem with this thread as the OP hasn't got his location filled in.

In the UK you don't need GFI outlets in bathrooms, as outlets aren't allowed in bathrooms at all

There is a single exception though, two pin shaver sockets - which must be transformer isolated and meet the required (high!) standard.

ronsimpson · May 10, 2018

Nigel Goodwin said:
That's solely country specific,

I am looking at US code. Appliances need to be double isolated. (if no GFI) example: I have a tub with a heater and motors built in. The on/off switches are down inside where you can not touch them. The "switch" your hand touches is a piece of plastic that reaches down and touches the switch's plastic knob. (double insulated)

I have not look at UL, VDE, CSA for this type of safety requirements for a long time. I think you have isolation in the power supply and isolation in the plastic box so you are safe. (with the power supply mounted externally there really is no power line involved) Probably the company did not want to go through the headache of passing UL so a battery was easy.

schmitt trigger · May 10, 2018

ronsimpson said:
Probably the company did not want to go through the headache of passing UL so a battery was easy.

Very likely. And a significant cost reduction, too.
And then they pass the burden of properly and safely powering up the device to the customer.

BobW · May 10, 2018

The OP has previously mentioned that he lives in Canada. Similar to the US code, the Canadian Electrical code allows shaver outlets having isolation transformers, or GFI protected outlets in washrooms. However IIRC the location of these outlets is restricted to the washbasin counter area. Actually, the newest revision of the code may specifically address power supplies for these hands-free flush devices, since they are now in common use.

dknguyen · May 10, 2018

BobW said:
The OP has previously mentioned that he lives in Canada. Similar to the US code, the Canadian Electrical code allows shaver outlets having isolation transformers, or GFI protected outlets in washrooms. However IIRC the location of these outlets is restricted to the washbasin counter area. Actually, the newest revision of the code may specifically address power supplies for these hands-free flush devices, since they are now in common use.

The washroom faucets came with a plugin. However, the kitchen faucet and toilets were battery powered.

Wallwarts in the toilet`

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